The recent speech by the Minister of Education Mr Heng Swee
Keat goes deeper than the usual arguments about the pros and cons of present
education system. One key word that he emphasized in his speech is
“fundamental”. We need to go back to the fundamentals of education. An
education system does the best when it best fulfills its fundamental missions. Each
society has common expectations and values shared by all members of the
community. To ensure the continuity of those fundamental spirits, education of
the young generation becomes an indispensable tool. Hence we can better evaluate
the Singapore education system in light of the fundamentals as a more effective
approach of analysis.
First, the society values fairness. In addition to human
inherent sense of fairness, Singaporeans appreciate the critical function of
fairness in running a racially-diverse society or maximizing the use of talented
people in a small population1. Hence, it suffices to say the idea of
fairness has been nailed into the head of Singaporeans. Such an idea is also
reflected in Singapore’s education system. Despite the calling for abolishing exams,
particularly the PSLE, such a possibility remains distant. Even the minister of
education does not endorse the move, as seen in his description of how some
countries that used to abolish exams are returning to exam-based systems2.
Exams, as stressful as they are, set objective standard of comparison. A score
of 90 is better than a score of 89. Though it is arguable how much difference
does that one mark really makes, the score-based evaluation based on
standardized exams has proven to be more reliable and fair than any other
alternative: the interview-based assessment, the talent-based assessment where
subjective evaluation is involved. The score given to a dance performance by a
student applicant is essentially arbitrary, and varies across different
assessors, who may themselves be influenced by their own idea of excellence,
their experiences and even their “mood” on the day of assessment. Hence, exam
scores carry much more weight of authority that appeals to people’s sense of
fairness. Hence, it may not be wise to argue for abolishing exams when such a
proposal infringes one of the fundamental values people hold dear to.
Secondly, the skills and values taught in school reflect the
social demand for such qualities among students. The schools are generally
responsive to social demands due to competition in attracting the best
students. The students with the right set of qualities the society wants are
more likely to succeed after they graduate. Graduating a successful batch of
students enhances the reputation of schools that can attract students with
better branding. Hence, the school will aim to equip students with the socially
desirable skills and values. The Anglo-Chinese School (Independent), with its
unique IB syllabus that emphasizes breath and independent research, is attracting
top secondary school students3. The Singapore Management University,
because of its unique seminar teaching style and extensive presentation
training, makes its graduates highly marketable4. Some critics worry
about the value education and skill impartation that are compromised by a
strong emphasis on exams. However due to competition among schools for diversity
and branding, the future of education scene may not be as bleak as some may
predict. Schools know that just by producing high scorers will not make their
graduates go far, and that will be reflected in testimonials like the graduate employment
survey5 that parents and prospective students closely examine every
year. Hence what the government should do may not be dictating value education
from a top-down approach, but rather encourage the diversity and competition
among schools while enhancing a series of graduate surveys and research to
enhance the information flow, which ultimately incentivizes schools to respond
to what society really needs.
Lastly, the undesirable aspects of education may well be
reflections of values of general society. As being pointed out by the minister
of education, the definition of success in education cannot be changed if the
definition of success in society is not changed. If society places a premium on
five C (Cash,
Condominium, Cars, Credit Card, and Country Club), students, teachers
and parents are likely to place a premium on things that are going to lead to
the possession of five C in the future. Grades, which determine the branding of
school one is entering or the streaming one is placed in, of course become the Holy
Grail that people go after. Hence to try to criticize about the over-emphasis
on grades while not recognizing the underlying social mentality is to exercise
double-standard. If one wants to reduce exam stress and obsession with results,
he has to start from society. And some people are actually doing that. For
example, the Think Family campaign is good social movement in getting people to
value love and togetherness more than materialistic gain. While measures can
definitely be taken to reduce exam stress, such as the non-disclosure policy of
top scores of PSLE candidates, the fundamental problem lies with
society at large. Education is a reflection of social attitude, which we have
to take into account to give a fair verdict of the performance of education
sector in Singapore.
The speech by the Minister offers fresh perspective on
thinking about education. We need to put the issue in a large social context
and realize that no policy can be suitably recommended without recognizing the
influence of society on education. As problems of education are reflections of
problems in society, we need to bear in mind what educators are capable of and
give them fair credit that we often forget in the mist of emotional criticism
of education.
References:
1.
http://www.moe.gov.sg/media/speeches/2000/sp24112000_print.htm
2.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1202055/Tories-We-bring-O-level-boost-exam-standards.html
3.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Baccalaureate_Diploma_Programme
4.
http://kentridgecommon.com/?p=181
5.
http://moe.gov.sg/education/post-secondary/files/ges-nus.pdf
The author is a private educator in Singapore , doing private tuition at www.frankltuition.sg
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